Your next new car may have windows made from high-strength plastic. In an effort to shed as much weight as possible to help boost fuel economy, vehicles like the new Ford Transit Connect may soon use the plastics to replace the rear window, and the 2014 Fiat 500L already does, The Detroit News reports.

The big benefits to using the high-strength (polycarbonate) plastic in automotive windows is its light weight and ability to be molded into just about any shape – proof of which can be found in current automotive headlights, 95 percent of which are made of the high-strength plastic. Though glass windows reportedly only make up about 100 pounds of a vehicle's weight, polycarbonate windows have the potential to shed half that weight.The ability for the high-strength plastic windows to be easily molded allows automakers to use polycarbonates to not only shed weight, but also make their vehicles more aerodynamic. For example, the 2014 Fiat 500L's fixed rear-side windows (behind the rear-passenger doors) are made from polycarbonate. The high-strength plastic reportedly allowed Fiat to design the windows into a single seamless part with its spoiler.

Another automaker working with the plastics is Ford. The Blue Oval is supposedly putting the plastics through a 10,000-hour durability testing cycle. If it's pleased with the results, the windows might appear on the new Transit Connect – though after the compact van's 2014-model-year introduction.It'll likely take years before polycarbonate windows appear on the majority of new cars. One obstacle is cost; the plastics are almost twice as expensive as the glass they replace. Another reason is that federal regulations only allow the plastics to be used in the rear and roofs of vehicle, as emergency first responders might have a tough time breaking through the windows. If the polycarbonate trend catches on and the durable plastic proves itself during crash testing, polycarbonate windows might just make up automotive windshields in the future.Source: The Detroit News

Thanks
for the great write-up, Christian
Seabaugh! It’s no surprise that automakers are beginning to use polycarbonate
plastics in car
windows, given the success that lightweight plastics have shown regarding vehicle efficiency,
performance, and strength when used in other car parts. The ability to shed 50
pounds with a simple switch from glass to plastics is certainly beneficial, especially as
automakers work to adhere to CAFE standards. Efficiency is key for the cars of tomorrow, and lightweight,
high-strength plastics
are increasingly playing a crucial role in this endeavor.

Based on the unimpressive performance of the types of plastic used for headlights, I think that it is justified that people wonder about the same materials being used for windows. It's very easy to polish a headlamp, for those people who even bother to do it. I can't imagine that it would be so easy to polish an entire rear window.

More like the bleeding edge - polycarbinate plastic, no matter how much UV inhibitor you load it up with will eventually turn yellow and lose strength. It will also scratch in dusty conditions - something Fiat will likely discover when they sell the 500L in the Southwestern US.

don't automatically assume because it's plastic that it'll be the same quality plastic as your cheap toys.

last time I checked glass windshields get scratched/chipped too.. they're far from a perfect solution, they're just what everyone's used to having. just because something's in widespread use now doesn't mean it's going to be the best solution forever.

what do you think they make fighter jet bubbles out of... it's not glass.......

Agree with most of the people here. Just because we have plastic grills and plastic headlight covers doesn't mean we should make everything plastic, especially windows with which we need to see safely from. I remember the steel cars with real metal chromed grills and glass headlamps, yet they were lighterweight than our plastic cars today.

No way. Plastic headlamps get all scratched up in a few years and look cloudy too. Bad idea! Plus you have a wiper sliding across it and there's always going to be some clay dust, sand , salt or some other abrasive road grim that gets between the wiper and plastic. If they really had plastic that could stand the test of time then don't u think they'd of used it already on headlamps which take the brunt? At least lamp units are an easy DIY job.

I agree with both previous comments. Plastic glass is a horrible idea. They will not hold up. Can you imagine how scratched up the windows would be after one hard winter of scraping ice off the windows? Add in the factor of the windows costing more to replace because the plastic is more expensive... No Thank You!

Durability won't be the issue. It's the yellowing. Headlights (which should have plastic or glass covers) get sandblasted over time. Also the UV rays will yellow the plastic so every will will be yellowed with a haze, good luck selling that. Also wash a vehicle and it's easy to put fine scratches into plastic even with a brand new slightly abrasive rag. The lame excuse will probably be you need to "treat the plastic" similar to the sealers you can put on headlights.

This is as lame as the plastic door panels in Saturn's Saved zero weight, costed slightly more, tricky to sand, many body shop places at the time either didn't know what they were doing or just wouldn't touch these plastic panels. I do admit never having a dent was nice but the paint chipped very easily even on the doors. You would loose the paint later & a little layer of plastic as well if a good rock hit in. Metal it would bounce off, may not leave any damage or a paint chip to the primer at the most.

I have a plastic windshield on my ATV. you can't see though it... can't clean it. any little bit of dust scratches it! going into the sun all you see is WHITE!!! you do not want Poly windshields on cars.